It’s a compelling portrait both of Bauer and of a fraught moment in German history. But from the vantage of the present, the issues — and the characters — seem pretty black and white.

The film is a little too polished and slick to really provide the slap in the face of the U.S. government it intends to deliver. But as a means for Cruise to shake off the dust of movies like “The Mummy” for something more substantive, it more than succeeds.

It’s ambiguity without engagement, art you can admire but not feel.

The action is entertaining enough, and it's kind of fun to follow the intricate plotting and planning of the jobs.

"Idiots” definitely isn’t for everyone, but its wry sensibility is several degrees more original than your average Hollywood knee-slapper.

The title implies a sort of old-world glamour, but the proverbial gilded cage is looking a bit dilapidated in The Heiresses, a subtle but intense character study from Paraguayan director Marcelo Martinessi.

It's an interesting premise, if a bit far-fetched for anyone who has spent long nights washing sheets and pillowcases that kids have thrown up on.

While Bullock and Tatum’s chemistry doesn’t sizzle on-screen, their romantic storyline still manages to make sense. Their hate-to-love journey is paved with laughs — yes, even at Brad Pitt’s expense — and a seemingly genuine camaraderie.

Sole Survivor is a puzzle whose pieces don’t fit together perfectly, but still create an cohesive whole.

Adult Beginners is funny and warm and sweet enough without overdoing it. Again, it's not groundbreaking, but it shakes things up a little.

Giroux's refusal to pass judgment on his characters prevents us from doing so, and the film is much more powerful for it.

The Proposal makes for a fascinating and not-a-little-morbid piece of artistic trolling.

Through all the skillfully juggled subplots, the overarching conflict has always been the family’s quest to keep hold of Downton Abbey — and thus preserve their role as the heart of the community, envied and adored by all — while also keeping up with the march of modernity.

The twists are somewhat predictable; a twist within a twist is reasonably satisfying. But this is the kind of movie that relies less on surprises than chemistry. And Pine and Newton’s is fine, nothing more. In fact their conversation is far more magnetic than their romantic scenes.

The whole cast does a phenomenal job. The movie is worth seeing purely for their performances, especially Newton, who gracefully balances the role of a caring yet apprehensive sister.

The Invisibles is part documentary and part feature film. For most of the movie, it's a good thing.

Chronicle plays like an extended episode of "The X-Files" might; DeHaan in particular comes off like one of the series' more-memorable characters. That's a compliment. It isn't a great movie, but one could imagine -- and hope -- that it becomes a cult favorite, outlasting other films of its ilk.

Writer and director Ti West accesses all the hot buttons for fans of the genre in a manner that doesn't make fun of it (and its followers) in a "Scary Movie" way, but instead treats it with the appropriate amount of respect. (Key word: appropriate.)

If you’re up for an absurdist comedy-horror take on “The Most Dangerous Game” that involves murder, bad hip-hop and hallucinogenic rabbit poop, Get Duked! is the movie for you.

It's not a bad movie, but it is very much a transitional one.

Despite the bumpy ride, the final destination reveals a weirdly daring comedy with the familiar, but still necessary, lesson that being popular isn't all it's made out to be in the movies.

There’s more than a whiff of the didactic in Difret, a film overly earnest in spelling out its cause in more-than-occasional exposition. But it is otherwise an affecting drama that is honest and clear-eyed about Hirut’s trauma, and the ongoing struggles she’ll face even if she’s freed, without ever treating her abuse in an exploitative manner.

There's something refreshing about a movie that knows what it is, and what it wants to be. John Wick is that kind of movie.

Annette Bening is so good in Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool that it makes up for a story that’s slighter than it should be.

Maggie has some rough edges — what caused the epidemic, for instance? — but it's still a worthwhile effort, especially for a first-time director. And for an old pro like Schwarzenegger, trying something different and succeeding.

The false notes are outnumbered by those that ring achingly true.

Out of the Furnace goes so far out of its way to be gritty and meaningful that it sometimes neglects its strongest feature: its actors.

Settles for simply being goofy good fun.